maxim



3 Sheets-Sheet 1.

(No Model.)

H. S. MAXIM. AUTOMATIC GUN.

No. 436,899. "Patented Sept. 23, 1890.

bwanlba:

wiblmas (No Model.)

3 Sheets-Sheet 2.-

H. S. MAXIM.

AUTOMATIC GUN.

Patented Sept. 23, 1890.

. (No Model.)

3' Sheets-Sheet 3.

H. S. MAXIM. AUTOMATIC GUN.

Patented Sept. 23, 1890.

I UNITED STATES 'PATENTOFEICE.

HYIRAM STEVENS MAXIM,- oE Lennon, ENGLAND.

AUTOMATIC ouN.

SPECIFICATION forming part Of' LBttGIB Patent No. 436,899, dated September 23, 1890.

Lpplication mu -11 8,1890. Serial No. 347,100. (No model.) Patented in England December 1, 1886, No. 16,734,111 Belgium October 15, 1887, No, 79,005; in Italy November 26, 1887, No, 22,500: in France December 14, 1887, No. 185,641; in Aus- I tria Hungary April 21,1888, No, 34,168; in Germanykugust 24, 1888, No. 44,208, and in Spaind'annary 25,1889, No. 8,895.

.To all whom it may concern..- h h i 1 I Be it known that I, HIRAM STEVENS MAXIM, a citizen oftheUnitedStates, residing at Lon-' qdon, England,,have invented certain new and .useful lmpro'vements in Machine or Auto- ,maticGu'ns, (for which I have obtained Let- 7 1888; in-Italy, No. 22,500, dated November 26,

ters Patentas follows: in Great Britain, No. 15,734, dated December 1, 1886; in France, No. 185,641,"dated December 14, 1887; in Germany, No. 44,208, dated August 24, 1888; in Austria-Hungary, No.- 34,1,66, dated April 21,

1887; in Spain, No. 8,895, dated January 25, 1889, and in Belgium, No. 79,005, dated October15, 1887,) of which the following is aspeci- .fication,- reference being had to the accompanying drawings.

This invention relates to automatic or machine guns, and more particularly to guns of this class invented and patented by me, which are operated by force created by the explosion in the barrel, and wherein the barrel and breech-block are arranged to slide longitudinally in a. stationary frame'or. support and are locked" together during the earlier part of the recoil, and the said block is then unlocked or released from the barrel and moved backward. therefrom to extract the empty cartridge-shell and permit the in troduction of afresh cartridge between the breech-block and the rearend of the barrel.

The present invention consists in mechanism of novel-construction for efiecting the operation of the gun in substantially this manner. T'lhis mechanism comprises an are. rangement of'hydraulic or hydropneumatic cylinders and pistons by means of which the energy of the recoil of the barrel is stored and" rendered available for returning the bar rel to its original or firing position, by which also the force of the forward or return movement of the barrel is utilized to continue the backward movement of the breechblock after it is unlocked from the barrel, and by which, finally, the energy of the said forward movement of, the barrel and continued backward movement of the breech-block is stored and rendered available for returning the breech-block to its normal or forward position. The devices directly co-operating to produce these results are improvements or modifications of other devices invented by me for the same purpose.

My present application involves, however, a other features of novelty, chief among which .vided with 'my new hydropneumatic apparatus for effecting the requisite movements of the barrel and breech-block. Fig. 2 is a sectional plan of the same. Fig. 3 is a transverse section on line a; as, Fig. 1. Fig. 4 is a detail view of a valve hereinafter described. Fig. 5 is a longitudinal section of a portion of the gun, showing a modification of my invention. Fig. 6 is a transverse section on line y y, Fig. 5. Fig. 7 is also a section on line y y,

Fig. 5, showing the parts in the positions which they occupy at the termination of the recoil. V 4 v A is-a strong casing or frame; B, thebarrel supported thereby and capable of a limited movement in said frame in line with its axis. The casing or stationary frame is provided with trunnions A, by which it is mounted; a V C is a sliding breech-block that is capable of a longitudinal movement with the barrel and of a further backward movement after Y the barrel has reached the limit of recoil.

In the gun shown in Figs. 1 to 3 the breech block 0 is provided with vertically-sliding blocks or pieces 0', which have teeth or projections C" formed thereon. The barrel B is formed with extensions- B, which have corresponding teeth or --projections B", with which the projections C'. on the sliding pieces 0' are adapted to engage, and thus locik'the breech-block to thebarrel. The sliding pieces C have, moreover, lateral projections D formed thereon, which in the recoil will slide upon inclined faces D on the frame A, so that the pieces 0' will be moved upward and their projections C" disengaged from the prothe hneech -blq ktfiqpn theabfipte T e- I- jection .nwmf li e" in the tg' oovej 5 projections D will slide upon a switch E, pivturned to the fii'iiiQpOSic-ibnQ Whii the"said guided in its to-and-fro'movemht"bfpfojeo oted-at E to the frame A, so that the pieces" pieces will fall and again lock the breechtions F on the said block fitted to slide-in 1121" g t vitil-kit and its long arm connected to the sliding n at na: h openate enfi einekg h breeoh-blockfrQmthebarrQl-fi ingipieee'zG'i-iwill eturn; t t-he said 1 orabout its pivot, "*"slid'e'==F the;

H "cte'd by iii- 5in: orastildito'ithei'slid F 1; ltherebmnenateiti M11 in I H isa sear pivote at and A i r e 'gagei ith fihe er ggand thus hold the :iiring-pij 0 i 6" nl s eckq a ile said sliding bar is moved upward. The ,breecbblock is: provided wit ex v adapted .to extract the empty car 50" fromthe barneh An-openi-n ii he nnden -sideof theira ne artridgeshellsma l: To PIOVldefifQRfllIllQOklllg he 5-5 yha'ndwhen niataessMyg-hollovg h formed j-on the iframetA', andgl-hevel wheels K are p ovide'd,havingelongatedhollo is cylinder attaiahd 0 provided with a piston L, the rod L" of which v P. e eina tet e..

7e b ehi ebkl i I the sliding piece 0 and unlock the lilohlifihm met P v e rameAa'nd works'in a stufling-boxin the rear end of the oylindei L and is firmly secured to a. projecti'on li' olifthdiliai'rhlh hhe rear end of the said cylinder L is connected with the forward nd th epe of by means of a pipe or passage J, 'prhvided'with a valve 1. The piston L is perforated and has firmly attached thereto a pipe Z, working in a stuffing-box in the front end eenieayima ere-Ia end:havingiatvalvwt' K him 106;} 'th p .l Ii wert m to slide on the pipe '11 and forms, 'bombination therewithya telescopie joint. v The pipe 41 has ,1 wi 'vi' liihll dpro'wided fig h'ooksillffi todrawtheoeantnidge into pol, by which the said shaft may be rotated I in its formed with internal liquid must pass through openings b and an' nular grooves b in 7 the valve-seat in. The said liquid will therefore act upon the valve 12;, thereby compressing the-spring n and opening the said valve to allow the liquid to In-the forward or .Zis-a casing, which forms a part of the gun-frame A, and into whichthe. cartridges I are to be fed by hand at Z. i-To provide for the automatic raising of the cartridges into position to be draw-n back by the extractors H", so that they willfall-into position to be thrust into the barrel by the breech-block in the forward movement, I provide an-elevator comprising a drum Y, .fitted to rotate. in suitable bearings in the easing.Z ,--and a corresponding drum Y, fitted to rotate onthe barrel. These drums ar e arranged to work anendless chain Z", provided with hooks or curved projections Y". The drum Y has one of its journals formed with internal teeth, as at X, with which gears a pinion X fixed on a shaft X, supported in a bracket W, attached to the casing Z. A crank-handle zis fitted on the end of the shaft X for the purpose of operating the elevator by hand.; To provide for the automatic operation of the said elevator the drum Y is grooves z z. The .grooves z extend-in a direction parallel with the axis of thebarrel, while the grooves z are madevof spiral form, and each groove .2

extends from the front end of one of the grooves z to the rear end. of one of the adjacent grooves z. The barrel is provided with a projection W, which in the recoil of the barrel will work in one or the other of the grooves z and cause the drums Y Y- to. ro-

' tate through a distance equal to the pitch of the said grooves. In'the forward movement of the barrel the projection TV will slide in one orotherof the grooves z and not rotate the drum Y. The elevator will therefore be operated only. during the recoilof the barrel.

- The operation of the gun shownin Figs. 1 .to 4 is as follows-J-that? is -to say: The parts are shown in .the position which they occupy when the breech is closed. In starting the gun the breech-block is unlocked from the'barrel by hand by. means of the handwheels I andscrews-k, and the said block is moved away from v the barrel a short distance by forcing liquidi-nto the front ends of the cylinders J by means of a hand-pump suitably connected therewith. A number of cartridges are then fedinto the elevator at Z" and raised by turning the crank-handle As soon as a cartridge has arrived above the barrel the breeeh-1ock is driven home to cause the hooksH to engagewith the head ofthe said cartridge. The breech-block is then moved back and draws the said cartridge out of the elevator. When the said block has reached its rearmost position, the said cartridge will be released and will fall into position to be fed into the barrel. The breech-block is then forced forward into its firing position by the expansion of the air in thereceiver Z and is again locked to the barrel by means of the hand-wheels I. and screws k. The gun may then be fire-d by pulling the lanyardattached to the lever h. In the recoil the projections D slide up the inclined guideway D, and thereby raise the sliding piece 0 and unlock the breech-block J from the barrel. The rams or plungers M force the liquid from the hydraulic bulIers M through the double valves-into the chambers .M", thereb com ressim the air. therein,

y P a which when the gun has terminated its recoil reacts upon the liquid in the said chamber and .forces the barrel'forward into its firingposition. The piston L and the pistons in the cylinders J are moved backwardwith the breech-block and the barrel in their recoil, thus creating a partial vacuum in'the front of the cylinders L and J. .The liquid in the rear of the cylinder L is forced through the valve Z and pipe J partly into the front of the said cylinder and partly through the valve j into the front of the cylinders J, thereby filling the space left by'the-rearward movement of the pistons. In the forward or return movement-of the barrel the liquid in the front of the cylinder L is forced through the pipe J and valve j into the cylinders J and acts upon the pistons in the said cylinders, thereby causing the same. to continue their backward movement and compressing the air in the rear of the said cylinders J and forcing it into the receivers Z. The breechblock is thus caused to continue its rearward movement while the barrel is moving forward. The valve 1" in the pipe 1' is at the same time kept closed by the pressure of the water in the said pipe. As soon as the barrel has returned to its firing position the stem 2' of the valve 2" strikes the valve 1 and opens the said valve, thus allowing the liqfiid to flow through the piston L into the rear of the cylinder L. The compressed air in the receiver Z will then react upon the pistons in the cylinders J and force the liquid from the front of the said cylinders through the said valve 1'', thereby driving the breechblock home. The breech-block is then an tomatically locked to the barrel, as above described.

It will be seen from the foregoing description that in each recoil of the gun the empty cartridge-shell is extracted from the barrel, a fresh cartridge drawn from the elevator, and the said elevator is caused to rotate, so as to bring another cartridge into position to be drawn therefrom in the next recoil, as above described. I

In Figs. 5, 6, and 7 I have shown a modification of my invention, wherein I employ a breech-block which is formed of two parts N 35 firing the same by electricity.

5 partN is V-shaped and is arranged to slide up 'anddown on the part N. When the breech is closed, the partN will fit into a groove N in the extension B of the barrel, and thus lock the breech-block to the barrel. The

said V-shaped piece N is'held down by aspring O, bearing at its upper 'end against a projection 0' on the part N and fitted 'atits lower end in a recess in the part N. The part N is formed with lateral studs x 5 provided with friction-rollers O", which in 'the-recoilwill ride up inclined surfaces P on the outer frame A, thus compressing the spring 0, raising the part N, and 'unlocking the vbreech-block from the barrel. A lever or 2 catch 0 is pivoted to the front part N of the breech-block and is acted upon by a spring o',whereby it is causedto enter a notch o" in the part N of the breech-block when the said part is raised, rs above described. A pin or stud. P is fixed in the frame A in such a position that when the breech-block has terminated or nearly terminated its forward movement the said lever or catch 0 will strike the said pin or stud and thereby be disengaged from the v-shaped piece N. The said piece will then be forced downward by its spring 0 and will lock the breech-block to the barrel. -In Figs. 5, 6, and 7 I have also shown the application to my improved gun of means for For this purpose a contact-pin or rod w, provided with an enlarged end, is fitted in the part N of the. breech-block and is acted upon by a spring w, which tends to'keep it out of conor conductor w" is secured in the conical opening 0 in the part N of the said block, so as to form a spring, which acts upon a horizontal pin or rod 1:, and when the breech 45. block is locked to the barrel presses the said pin or rod against the contact-pin w, which is thus moved into contact with the cartridge in the barrel. The said wire or conductor w will thus be electrically connected with 5 the cartridge through the pin or rod 1 and the spring contact-pinw. A hollow rod or plunger 'v" is fitted in a 1- cess in the extension B of the barrel and is acted upon by a spring u. This plunger carries a conductor a, which is held by the spring a in contact I with the conductor w while the breech-block is locked to the barrel. The conductor u is connected with one pole of a battery or other.

electric generator. The other pole of the said battery is connected through the barrel cartridges used mu -'t be constructed in any well-known or suitable manner, so that they can be exploded by electricity.

A wire- Itis obvious that the devices hereinbefore described for locking the breech-block to the barrel and unlocking it therefrom are applicable to guns arranged to operate without the aid of hydraulic apparatus.

What I claim is 1 1. In an automatic or machine gun, the com bination, with a frame or support, of a barrel capable of sliding longitudinally therein, one or more hydraulic cylinders and pistons connected with the barrel, and reservoirs containing air connected with the cylinders and intermediate valve mechanism, whereby the .air is compressed in said receivers by the recoil of the barrel, as set forth.

' 2.. In a machine-gun, the combination, with a frame or support, of a longitudinally-mot" able barrel, hydraulic cylinders secured to the frame, pistons therein connected to the barrel, a reservoir at the rear of the frame communicating with the cylinders, and springvalves between thecylinders and the reservoir, said valves being constructed, substantially as set forth, to oppose the passage of the liquid from the cylinders to the reservoirs, but to permit it to return more freely.

extensions on said movable portion of the breech-block, and inclined faces on the frame.

of the gun with which said extensions engage iu the backward movement of the barrel and-by means of which the movable part of the breech-block is disengaged from the barrel, as set-forth.

4. The combinatiomwith the sliding breechblock, of a part vertically movable therein, lugs or projections thereon adapted to engage with corresponding projections on the barrel whenthe breech-block is in its. normal position, lateral extensions on said movable part, stationary inclined guides or faces with which the said projections engage, and a pivoted switch under which the projections slide on the backward movement of the barreland r op over which they return'to. the firing position longer course of movement than the barrel,

and'extractor-hooks carried by said breechblock, one set of which is in position-to engage with a cartridgein the magazine and the other set to engage with that in the bar-1,

rel, as herein set forth.

6. The combination, with the vertically? movable portion of the breech-block normally engaging with the barrel for locking the breech-block thereto, of threaded rods working in the gun-frame and having projections that engage with the said movable part when the breech-block is locked and means for raising the rods by hand,whereby the breechbloek is unlocked, as set forth.

7. In a machinegun having a sliding ban rel and breech-block movable therewith, the combination of a cylinder and perforated piston connected with the barrel, one or more cylinders and pistons connected to the breechblock, and valveficontrolled passages of communication between the forward ends of the cylinders connect-ed to the breech-block and the forward and rear ends of that connected with the barrel, whereby the return of the barrel to its firing position after recoil will operate to drive back the pistons connected with the breech-block and compress the air in the cylinders in which they work, as herein set forth. i

8. The combination, with the sliding'barrel and breech-block of a machine-gun, of two drums, one turning around the barrel, the other mounted below the barrel, an endless chain or belt passing around said drums and provided with hooks or projections for elevating cartridges to a position to be engaged by the breech-block, and means for imparting an intermittent movement to the drums, as set forth.

9. The combination, with the sliding barrel and breech-block of a machine-gun, of a drum surrounding the barrel and a drum lnounted beneath the barrel, the former being provided on its interiorwit-hconnected grooves alternately parallel with and oblique to the axis of the barrel, a projection on the barrel adapted to enter said grooves and impart to the drum a given movement around the barrel at each recoil, and an endless chain or belt for elevating the cartridges passing around said drums, as set forth.

10. In a machine-gun havinga sliding barrel and breech-block, the combination of a system of hydropneumatic cylinders, pistons working therein and connected, respectively, with the barrel and the breech-block, and valve-controlled passages of communication between the cylinders, substantially as set forth, whereby the return of the barrel after recoil and the forward movement of the piston connected therewith will continue the backward movement of the pistons connected with the breech-block and store energy in the cylinders in which said pistons work, substantially as set forth.

I-IIRAM STEVENS MAXIM.

Witnesses:

DAVID YOUNG, CHAS. B. BURnoN. 

